


Do You Feel Better?

by AnotherHomosexualMale



Category: Raised by Wolves (TV 2020)
Genre: Feelings, First Kiss, First Love, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-26
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-17 18:41:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29721540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnotherHomosexualMale/pseuds/AnotherHomosexualMale
Summary: Campion and Paul share a moment.
Relationships: Campion/Paul
Kudos: 2





	Do You Feel Better?

**Author's Note:**

> Campion and Paul. Why not? They are entering the world of adolescence, and I don't see Campion sharing that kind of connection with anyone else.

He was still twelve years old. The cold beat down in a savage, unrelenting display of nature, and with every breath Campion took, the smell of dust and dry mountain air filled his nostrils. Vita laughed below him, with Holly chasing after the younger girl, digging holes in the dirt, playing with the stick people. Campion sat all alone at the top of the boulder above their home, fiddling with a small rock. Since Mother had been taking extra time in her patrolling, and Father had been busy taking care of the new children, he had never been so lonely.

Campion sighed.

His grip tightened around the rock. He had only wanted to keep his family together, to survive. Not for Mother to destroy all of those innocent lives in the Ark in a matter of minutes. How could she just leave him and Father like that? Campion's arms began to shake. Those definitely weren't tears that glistened in his eyes. There was no way that that was a whimper crawling out of his throat.

What the hell, why was he crying? In one fluid motion, Campion lifted his arm and threw the rock as hard as he could. Up, up, up, it arched, before coming down onto the roof of his home. It slid right back down, fell into the gutter, bounced out, and dropped right onto a boy's head.

Paul flinched when it hit him. He had been praying in silence, but now he looked above him, trying to see if it just happened to be raining rocks in this foreign planet, or if someone had thrown it at him. Campion flushed, cheeks pink. God, he was an idiot. He had to stop being so stupid if he really wanted to help these kids.

Paul’s gaze lifted to meet Campion's, and he tensed up immediately.

“Campion? Did you throw this?” the boy inquired, holding up the rock and raising his body.

“Um... Yeah, I guess it slipped.”

Paul stood up and walked over to the earth wall. He stood on his tiptoes when he reached the wall, stretching as far as he could, arm extended to hand Campion the small rock. Campion frowned.

“Why do you still pray?” he said. “Why don’t you come out and ask Father about other things?”

“Because that's the right thing to do,” the boy replied. A small smile quirked onto Campion's lips. He reached out, ready to grab the rock, when he slipped. It happened so fast that Campion barely had time to process what had happened before he was on the ground, groaning and clutching his elbow. Paul stood off to the side, staring rather awkwardly at him. “Are you okay?” he asked slowly.

“Yeah,” Campion groaned, “I just hit my elbow.”

“Do you want me to get Father?”

“No!” Campion interrupted quickly, sitting up. “I'm fine, okay?” Paul tipped his head confusedly, offering him a hand up. Campion took it gladly.

“Campion, are you sure you are okay?” Campion stopped. Was he okay? Was he, really? He didn't really have a family anymore. His own Father barely spent any time with him, and whenever he did, they were moments filled with a certain tension. Mother wasn’t around that much anymore, and his siblings were all dead. Along with the families of the new kids. Paul was ok, but even he was obnoxious at times, praying to ‘Sol’ and trying to convince Campion that he had all of the answers.

He realized that he had never been so alone before, even surrounded by people. Father and Mother had taught him about puberty, and how he was turning into a man, and substances inside his brain and body called “hormones” were partially responsible for his multiple feelings of sadness and anger. _'Absolutely normal'_ as Father had added. And now here was Paul, looking at him with those big eyes, and his serious face.

“Not really,” Campion admitted, looking down at his knees. The dirt beneath his feet was dry and cold. He shuffled his legs awkwardly, trying to ignore the heavy silence emanating from the other boy.

With no warning or explanation whatsoever, Paul slowly grabbed the sides of Campion's head and pulled him closer, pressing his lips against his forehead. It was a fleeting feeling of warmth and softness, but when Paul pulled away, Campion's eyes were as wide as the moon. His knees trembled and his face was tinged with red.

“W-What...?” he stuttered after Paul let him go and took a step back. Campion touched two fingers to his forehead. He could have sworn that it felt like he had been shocked with electricity. “What was that?”

“You kiss someone to make them feel better,” Paul explained sparingly. “My mom used to do that to me while we were in the Sim, whenever I was feeling too anxious. Do you feel better now?” Campion blinked and nodded ever so slightly. He felt like he was in a dream. He hadn't been kissed by another boy in his life. Not on the cheek, not on the forehead, definitely not on the lips. He hadn't been expecting to get a kiss from a boy like Paul, so obnoxiously religious and so focused on “purity”.

And he hadn't expected it to feel so good. For no reason whatsoever, Campion felt a smile blossom on his face. His heart fluttered. He had been kissed, and it had caused a whole new feeling to flourish inside of him. Just a few months ago, Mother had taught him about the differences between the comforting feelings caused by the touch of a family member, and those who appeared when a human male was starting to develop sexual interest in other human beings, with the purpose of finding a partner and sharing intimacy.

As impulsive as he was, Campion took Paul by the shoulders and spun him around before planting a small peck of his own on the boy's cheek. Paul froze and his face grew warm beneath Campion's lips.

“What about you? Do you feel better?” Campion muttered against his cheek. Paul nodded. “Good.” Campion let go of Paul and turned around, starting to scale the rock. “Come up here,” Campion gestured, holding out a hand for Paul to take.

Paul blushed even more, but took it and followed him up the exact way that Campion told him to. When they reached the top, Campion sat as he was before. A little reluctantly, Paul did the same. They both stared down at Hunter and Holly reluctantly playing with Vita beneath them.

The air still beat down on them with the savage and merciless sign of the approaching night. It still smelled like dirt and mountain air. The sound of Vita’s quiet giggles as Father returned with freshly cut meat from the silo to prepare dinner. But at least Campion wasn't alone. He held Paul's sticky hand in his, and with rosy cheeks, they stared down, with the last rays of light bathing them before the nightfall.


End file.
